Matariki Celebrations Draw People Home To The Eastern BOP

Listing Page Text

Matariki Celebrations Draw People Home To The Eastern BOP

Matariki is a time to reflect, celebrate and prepare for the year ahead, and this year people are encouraged to return to their whānau, wherever and whoever that might be. In the Eastern Bay of Plenty, a special celebration will be held on Thursday...

Read more >

Looking After Mangakino’s Youth Benefits Entire Community

Listing Page Text

Looking After Mangakino’s Youth Benefits Entire Community

Mangakino School is a safe and welcoming space for its 50 or so primary-aged students but after school there is little to do other than hang around the local skate park. That’s why Mangakino Central Charitable Trust’s General Manager,...

Read more >

Helping Kōkako Stretch Their Wings

Listing Page Text

Helping Kōkako Stretch Their Wings

With electric blue wattles hanging beneath its beak, and a song described as hauntingly beautiful, the North Island kōkako is one of New Zealand’s most ancient flying birds. Its South Island counterpart hasn’t been seen for decades and...

Read more >

Home Maintenance Help For Tūwharetoa Homeowners

Listing Page Text

Home Maintenance Help For Tūwharetoa Homeowners

You can give a man a fish, or you can teach him how to fish – and Tūwharetoa Settlement Trust is taking the latter approach with their housing strategy called He Iwi Kāinga which has just received a $320,000 grant from BayTrust’s strategic...

Read more >

Guardians Of The Lake

Listing Page Text

Guardians Of The Lake

Surrounded by lush native bush and shimmering every hue of blue and green imaginable, Rotorua’s lakes are the heart and soul of the Te Arawa region. For centuries they have drawn people to the Bay of Plenty to swim, fish, boat, waterski, kayak,...

Read more >

Improving Outcomes One Possum At A Time

Listing Page Text

Improving Outcomes One Possum At A Time

Korehāhā Whakahau is more than a typical pest eradication programme – it is system change in action. The aspirational project aims to eliminate possums from 4700ha within Ngāti Awa’s rohe – including Whakatāne, Ōhope and Ōhiwa...

Read more >

School Children Ready To Embrace Te Ao Maori

Listing Page Text

School Children Ready To Embrace Te Ao Māori

Imagine a world where we understand our local history from all perspectives, have empathy with iwi, can practice tikanga in our daily lives and pronounce Māori words correctly.   Soon an entire generation of school children will have a more...

Read more >

Prestigious Art Competition Remains In Whakatane

Listing Page Text

Prestigious Art Competition Remains At Home In Whakatāne

Winning the renowned Molly Morpeth Canaday Award is something hundreds of New Zealand artists strive to achieve each year. Named after a Wellington-born expressionist painter who passed away in the early 1970s, the award celebrates artistic...

Read more >

1 Million Grant Announced To Help Revive Sick BOP Estuary

Listing Page Text

$1 Million Grant Announced To Help Revive Sick BOP Estuary

BayTrust is committing $1 million worth of funding over the next three years to the effort to restore the badly degraded Te Waihī estuary that was once a main food bowl for the coastal Bay of Plenty.   Unimpeded farm development and...

Read more >

Opotiki's Long Awaited Community Hub Gets Green Light

Listing Page Text

Opotiki’s Long-Awaited ‘Community Hub’ Gets Green Light

Opotiki’s Long-Awaited ‘Community Hub’ Gets Green Light   A library is a key focal point for every New Zealand town but Ōpōtiki residents are in desperate need of a new one. For the past 10 years the old facility has...

Read more >

Help Available Amid Tough Financial Times

Listing Page Text

Help Available Amid Tough Financial Times

Working with Taupō locals who are struggling to get on top of their finances is like peeling back layers of an onion, says the Family and Financial Solutions Trust.   “When we see people it’s not unusual for them to only give you...

Read more >

Life Returns To Aongatete Forest

Listing Page Text

Life Returns To Aongatete Forest

Life Returns To Aongatete Forest New Zealand’s native forests should be dark, with green shoots and seeds scattered across the forest floor and sunlight struggling to break through the dense canopy. They should also be extremely noisy; the...

Read more >

Values-based education for more Rotorua students

Listing Page Text

More Rotorua Students Set To Receive Values-Based Education

In an ideal world, our tamariki would all learn the values of integrity (pono), resilience (taikaha), positive relationships (whanaungatanga) and respect (manaakitanga) at a young age. But in some cases, children are missing out on these life lessons...

Read more >

New Wharekai Set To Strengthen Koutu Community 

Listing Page Text

New Wharekai Set To Strengthen Koutu Community 

New Wharekai Set To Strengthen Koutu Community    An impressive new wharekai will soon open its doors at Te Koutu Marae in Rotorua and promises to be so much more than just a building. “It will become the hub of our community...

Read more >

Community Spirit Shines Bright In Katikati

Listing Page Text

Community Spirit Shines Bright In Katikati

Sometimes it’s the littlest things that make a community special – like the free ‘help-yourself-to-produce’ stall; the bike repair stand; the yoga class; the school holiday ‘gloop’ session; or the afternoon board games...

Read more >

Providing A Collective Voice For Conservation

Listing Page Text

Providing A Collective Voice For Conservation

Providing A Collective Voice For Conservation   New Zealanders are passionate about community conservation but we are losing our biodiversity at an alarming rate – along with volunteer interest. “A lot of conservation volunteers...

Read more >

Recreate

Listing Page Text

Helping Youth with Disabilities

Helping Youth With An Intellectual Disability To Embrace Life Three years ago Recreate NZ brought its innovative programmes to the Bay of Plenty and now 80 or so local youth who experience a mild to moderate intellectual disabilities have a new lease...

Read more >

Volunteer Matching Service To Launch In Taupo

Listing Page Text

Volunteer Matching Service To Launch In Taupo

Volunteering for a good cause is something many Kiwis love to do – but finding the right organisation to help in the right way, isn’t always straight-forward. A new project called Volunteer Taupo is being developed in the central North...

Read more >

EDGE Workshops In Demand To Help Struggling Boys

Listing Page Text

EDGE Workshops In Demand To Help Struggling Boys

When you don’t do well at school, and letters and numbers don’t come naturally, students can shut down very quickly. Many find traditional classrooms difficult and are kinesthetic learners – they learn best by doing, rather than...

Read more >

Restoring The Mauri Of Te Arawa’s Lakes

Listing Page Text

Restoring The Mauri Of Te Arawa’s Lakes

On the surface, Rotorua’s lakes glisten like jewels in the landscape – but in reality they are plagued by pests and poor water quality from years of pollution and irresponsible land use. No-one cares more deeply about restoring the mauri...

Read more >

Helping People Take Control of their chronic illness

Listing Page Text

Helping People Take Control of their chronic illness

Imagine not being able to walk from your bedroom to the living room without feeling exhausted and needing to lie down again. For tens of thousands of New Zealanders, that’s the reality of life with chronic fatigue and pain. Such illnesses can...

Read more >

Future Leaders Eastern Bay

Listing Page Text

Inspiring our Future Leaders in the Eastern Bay

Some of New Zealand’s most inspirational leaders hail from small, provincial towns, and now a youth-lead initiative called Future Leaders is helping light a spark within rangatahi across the Eastern Bay of Plenty and beyond. Since the programme...

Read more >

The Spirit of Excellence Education Trust to boost literacy and numeracy

Listing Page Text

The Spirit of Excellence Education Trust to boost literacy and numeracy

'Raising the Standard' of Education for Rotorua Kids A child’s ability to read and write has a profound impact on their future success and wellbeing – but not everyone is getting the help they need to master these basic...

Read more >

BayTrust commits to the Sport BOP

Listing Page Text

BayTrust commits to the Sport BOP Coachforce programme for a further 3 years >

BayTrust has just approved 44 grants to different community groups across the region in their December funding round worth a total of $2.4m. Sport Bay of Plenty is the largest recipient and will now get $552,500 annually for the next three years (an...

Read more >

Popular School Camp Embarks On New Adventure

Listing Page Text

Popular School Camp Embarks On New Adventure

Popular School Camp Embarks On New Adventure   Going on school camp creates special memories for every Kiwi child and the Ngamuwahine Outdoor Education Lodge has provided that opportunity for almost 40 years. Camp Director and Head...

Read more >

New Ambulance Base

Listing Page Text

New Ambulance Base - Waihau Bay

New Ambulance Base Now Within Reach For East Coast Community When the nearest hospital is two hours away, it’s essential a St John ambulance and trained volunteers are close at hand when there’s a medical emergency. That’s why the...

Read more >

Tackling the Digital Divide in the Eastern Bay of Plenty

Listing Page Text

Tackling the ‘Digital Divide’ in the Eastern Bay of Plenty

Today’s youngsters are often called ‘digital natives’ – in other words, they’ve grown up with the internet and instinctively know how to use technology. But that’s not the case in every community. A...

Read more >

Re-connecting & Re-engaging Isolated Youth

Listing Page Text

Re-connecting & Re-engaging Isolated Youth

Te Ika Whenua Hauora is used to helping people overcome the impact of isolation.  For almost 40 years they’ve helped remote communities such as Minginui, Ruatahuna, Waiohau and Kaiangaroa from their base in Murupara to combat everything...

Read more >

Taupo Residents Discover New Passion For Te Reo

Listing Page Text

Taupō Residents Discover New Passion For Te Reo

Taupō Residents Discover New Passion For Te Reo   Māori language and culture are an integral part of New Zealand’s identity – yet many of us feel disconnected because of a lack of knowledge.   It was that feeling that...

Read more >

Caring for Vulnerable Children

Listing Page Text

Caring for Vulnerable Children

Supporting Those Who Care For Our Vulnerable Children   Over 24,000 New Zealand children are currently living in foster or whānau care after being removed from their biological parents due to abuse or neglect. Thankfully, thousands of...

Read more >

Helping Turangi To Stand Proud

Listing Page Text

Helping Turangi To Stand Proud

Supporting each other is a recipe for success in any small town – that’s why Safe Turangi is working hard alongside others to ensure Turangi is a proud community where everyone feels safe and connected. Safe Turangi is a small organisation...

Read more >

Forest Rescue Now A Vital Service For Mountain Bike Riders

Listing Page Text

Forest Rescue Now A Vital Service For Mountain Bike Riders

Forest Rescue Now A Vital Service For Mountain Bike Riders   As Charlotte Hamilton lay in excruciating pain on the floor of Rotorua’s Whakarewarewa Forest, she thought she might be paralysed. “Initially I couldn’t feel...

Read more >

Making Sure The Wheels On The Bike Go Round & Round

Listing Page Text

Making Sure The Wheels On The Bike Go Round & Round

Making Sure The Wheels On The Bike Go Round & Round   Learning to ride a bike is a big childhood milestone but a surprising number of kids are missing out on developing this vital skill. “There’s been a whole generation who...

Read more >

Helping older New Zealanders in Taupo

Listing Page Text

Helping older New Zealanders in Taupo

Helping Older New Zealanders Age Well In Taupo Taupo has always been a popular place to retire and with our ageing population, the need to look after older people in the region is more important than ever. Age Concern Taupo has this group’s...

Read more >

Katikati Taiao Positive Pathways

Listing Page Text

Guiding Katikati Youth Onto A Positive Path

The transition from high school to the real world can be daunting for young people, especially if they don’t have a clear tertiary education or employment pathway to follow. An estimated 200 or more rangatahi living between Waihi Beach and Te...

Read more >

Social Link: Helping Those Who Help Others

Listing Page Text

Social Link: Helping Those Who Help Others

Social Link: Helping Those Who Help Others Social agencies generally work with the most vulnerable people in our communities – but these organisations often need plenty of support themselves. The Social Sector Innovation Trust (known as...

Read more >

Kai Pai Rotorua

Listing Page Text

Kai Pai Rotorua

Nourishing Lunches Fill Young Bellies In Rotorua   It’s hard to concentrate on schoolwork when you have an empty stomach. Sadly that’s a reality for hundreds of Rotorua children every day. But a new low-cost school lunch order...

Read more >

Digital Learning Ready To Go Viral In Murupara

Listing Page Text

Digital Learning Ready To Go Viral In Murupara 

Digital Learning Ready To Go Viral In Murupara    There’s no doubt the internet has changed our education system and the way Kiwi kids learn – the trouble is, not everyone has access to it. That’s why Te Aka Toitū...

Read more >

Murupara's digital hub

Listing Page Text

Transforming Young lives through tech

We live in a digital world but not everyone can afford an internet connection at home – and that’s why Murupara’s new Digital Hub is in such hot demand. The doors officially opened in mid-September and Digital Hub Manager Ima Nuku is...

Read more >

Door Finally Opens To Home Ownership For Tauranga Family

Listing Page Text

Door Finally Opens To Home Ownership For Tauranga Family

With steady jobs, a combined income of almost $200,000 and a sizeable deposit saved, buying a home sounds like a straight-forward process for Kim and Corey Samuel, and Kim’s parents, Angie and Michael Ryan. But their experience has been far from...

Read more >

Growing Food, Knowledge & Community Spirit in Taupo

Listing Page Text

Growing Food, Knowledge & Community Spirit in Taupō

Our desire to look after our planet, live self-sufficient lifestyles, and reduce our grocery bills is benefitting Taupō Community Gardens as growing your own fruit and vegetables is becoming more popular. “Financially times are tough for a lot...

Read more >

Legal Problems Are A Piece Of Cake

Listing Page Text

Legal Problems Are A Piece Of Cake At Baywide Community Law

Baywide Community Law looks like any other professional law firm – except clients often ‘pay’ for legal services with donations of home-baked cakes or potted plants instead of money. The law centre caters for people who cannot afford...

Read more >

Answering Coastguards Call For Help

Listing Page Text

Answering Coastguard’s Call For Help

Answering Coastguard’s Call For Help When you’re out on the water and something goes wrong – your motor breaks down, you run out of fuel, or someone has fallen overboard – there’s one organisation who you rely on to...

Read more >

Putting Rotorua Locals In the Driver's Seat

Listing Page Text

Putting Rotorua Locals In The Driver’s Seat

No matter our background, physical or mental capabilities, we all want to feel as though we ‘belong’ within our community. Rotorua’s Te Aratu Trust has been helping people with mental and intellectual disabilities do exactly that for...

Read more >

Surfs Up In the BOP This Summer

Listing Page Text

Surf’s Up In the BOP This Summer

With sizzling temperatures forecast and regional lockdowns finally starting to ease, there’s one place Kiwis will be heading en masse this summer – to the beach. Keeping everyone safe once they get there is a job that falls to hundreds of...

Read more >

Restoring, Regenerating & Rebuilding Waiariki Waterways

Listing Page Text

Restoring, Regenerating & Rebuilding Waiariki’s Waterways

Stream banks, roadside verges and rail corridors around Rotorua are brimming with gorse and blackberry – and Tipu Waiariki Charitable Trust sees a major environmental opportunity to transform our region’s landscape. By removing weeds and...

Read more >

Western Heights

Listing Page Text

Western Heights Champions Help Shape Community’s Future

Western Heights Champions Help Shape Community’s Future                 Pictured: Owen Roberts and Veena Kameta   Veena Kameta knows the Rotorua suburb of Western...

Read more >

Te Puke Teens Push Themselves To The Edge

Listing Page Text

Te Puke Teens Push Themselves To The Edge

Te Puke Teens Push Themselves To The Edge Rugby legend Jonah Lomu once said to get through the toughest periods of his life, he had to look within. “I don’t give up. Never have, never will.” That quote is now inscribed on...

Read more >

Volunteering BOP

Listing Page Text

Why Volunteering Is New Zealand’s Beating Heart

Why Volunteering Is New Zealand’s Beating Heart Volunteering your time to help others is part of our Kiwi culture – from coaching kids’ sports teams, to running the local marae or contributing to your church or school. However the...

Read more >

Solar Energy Powers School Camp Forward

Listing Page Text

Solar Energy Powers School Camp Forward

Ngamuwahine Outdoor Education Lodge, in the lower Kaimais, is where lifelong memories are made for 3000 school children every year. Eleven schools currently send their students there on school camp to enjoy outdoor adventures such as kayaking,...

Read more >

Small Town finding ways forward for their youth

Listing Page Text

Small Town finding ways forward for their youth

A New Way Forward For Turangi’s Youth Small town New Zealand is a wonderful place to grow up but having ‘nothing to do’ outside of school hours is a problem that generations of youngsters have faced. It seems Turangi may have...

Read more >

Whakatane Heart Is Beating Strong

Listing Page Text

Whakatane’s Heart Is Beating Strong

You can measure a community’s spirit by the size of its heart – and in Whakatane, that heart is sizeable indeed. The Have a Heart charitable trust was founded in 2013. Their purpose is to grow great families at the heart of Eastern Bay of...

Read more >

Rotorua Builds New Bridges To Employment

Listing Page Text

Rotorua Builds New Bridges To Employment

National unemployment figures might look low on paper but Rotorua employers say there’s not a shortage of people to employ – rather a shortage of people who are ready for employment. According to latest figures from the Ministry of Social...

Read more >

Re-Establishing Wetlands & Turangawaewae

Listing Page Text

Re-Establishing Wetlands & Turangawaewae

Kathleen Morrison was 12 years-old when 25ha of her family’s ancestral land was signed over to the Crown to manage – and she was aged 60 when her whanau finally got ownership rights back through the Māori Land Court.  Now she...

Read more >

More Night Owls Appearing All Over Tauranga

Listing Page Text

More Night Owls Appearing All Over Tauranga

 

Kimberley Cleland loves seeing the joy on people’s faces when they go to a Night Owl cinema event for the first time.  “There’s something a little bit magic about being outside, huddled under the stars together, enjoying a...

Read more >

Supporting An Organisation That Supports Taupo

Listing Page Text

Supporting An Organisation That Supports Taupo

Supporting An Organisation That Supports Taupo Behind the scenes of every small town in New Zealand, there’s an army of volunteers and workers who keep the wheels turning. In Taupo there are over 80 different organisations dedicated to...

Read more >

Switching Focus From Sea To Land

Listing Page Text

Switching Focus From Sea To Land

When a former cargo vessel was donated by Stoney Creek Shipping to YWAM (Youth With A Mission) Aotearoa in Tauranga in early 2019, the vision was clear – raise some funds, transform it into a medical aid ship, and set sail for remote Pacific Island...

Read more >

Reducing Our Horror Drowning Rate

Listing Page Text

Reducing Our Horror Drowning Rate

Reducing Our Horror Drowning Rate   Our beautiful waterways and coastline are integral to our way of life – but drowning remains the leading cause of recreational death in New Zealand and our third highest cause of accidental...

Read more >

Getting Taupo's workforce ready to face the future

Listing Page Text

Getting Taupō’s Workforce Ready To Face The Future

Growing a provincial town’s economy in the wake of COVID-19 is no easy task but Enterprise Great Lake Taupō is certainly up for the challenge. The economic development agency was first established in 2007 and will this year embark on an...

Read more >

New Whanau Mentoring Programme Set To Launch In Tauranga

Listing Page Text

New Whanau Mentoring Programme Set To Launch In Tauranga

New Whanau Mentoring Programme Set To Launch In Tauranga Child poverty is a big issue in New Zealand but it’s impossible to help our vulnerable youngsters by focussing on their needs alone. That’s why the Salvation Army is launching a...

Read more >

Helping Taupos Rural Residents Look Out For One Another

Listing Page Text

Helping Taupo’s Rural Residents Look Out For One Another

Helping Taupo’s Rural Residents Look Out For One Another Joy Johnson knows there are many reasons why rural residents don’t bother to call police when a burglary occurs or stock goes missing. “They think it’ll take police...

Read more >

Renewed Energy and Enthusiasm

Listing Page Text

Renewed Energy and Enthusiasm For Whakatane Bluelight >

Keeping kids busy goes a long way to keeping them out of trouble – and the Bluelight programme run by Whakatane Police is certainly doing just that. The region’s new Bluelight co-ordinator, Richard Hamer, took up the role 18 months ago and...

Read more >

Supporting Grandparents To Go Back To Square One

Listing Page Text

Supporting Grandparents To Go Back To Square One

Supporting Grandparents To Go Back To Square One   Most grandparents look forward to spending quality time with their grandkids, spoiling them and celebrating the special milestones in life. But a growing number of grandparents in our...

Read more >